Our partnership with The Freedom Story

Estimates suggest that as many as 60,000 children are exploited in the Thai commercial sex trade each year. Many of these children come from the rural regions of the North, where poverty, gender discrimination, and familial obligations encourage many to enter the sex trade. Others are tricked or forced into the industry. While the government has made some important strides toward overcoming the sexual exploitation of children, much work is still needed.

Over the past nine years, The Freedom Story has developed an innovative model of prevention in the northern region of Chiang Rai, Thailand. Near the Golden Triangle, made up of numerous rural communities, Chiang Rai has functioned as a supply site for the Thai commercial sex industry. A central component of The Freedom Story’s prevention model is their human rights and awareness programs. Their human rights programs teach students and community members about the Thai law and their legal and human rights. Through their 3-3-5 program, counseling programs, and camps, their awareness programs facilitate social and sexual awareness and the healing of individuals and communities. Our partnership with The Freedom Story supported their human rights and awareness programs so that the most vulnerable students could be educated about trafficking and the laws relating to marriage, divorce, guardianship, land ownership, citizenship and inheritance. A lack of knowledge in these areas can lead to exploitation, so raising awareness of human rights in schools and communities is a key strategy to prevent trafficking.